


The Tutor

by meganzzz23



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-21
Updated: 2014-05-30
Packaged: 2018-01-16 12:23:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1347328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meganzzz23/pseuds/meganzzz23
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lydia has a crush on the most popular guy in school, Stiles Stilinski. She finally gets an opportunity to talk to him when Coach asks her to tutor him in math.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!
> 
> This stemmed from a prompt I was given on my tumblr. This first chapter is what I posted there but I'll be completing it in chapters here.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> packmartinski.tumblr.com

“Stiles Stilinski is the vein of my existence.”

Allison sighed, and turned to her friend. “He ignored you again?”

Lydia leaned back against Allison’s locker that they were standing in front of. She looked down at the brown tiling of the school’s, and nodded slowly. “I’ve had a crush on him since the third grade! The fact that he’s hardly said ten words to me in all that time is truly surprising.”

“I’m sorry. Lyds.” Allison said. “You’ll get him someday though. I know it!”

She said it with confidence, but really wasn’t so sure. Stiles Stilinski was the most popular guy in school. He was the star lacrosse player, and man of every girl’s dreams. Her shy and nerdy best friend seemed unlikely to get his attention. That’s why Allison tried her hardest to get Lydia some confidence. Maybe then the rest would come easily.

Lydia suddenly gave a small gasp. Her eyes were fixed on a spot somewhere just past Allison’s head. Allison turned quickly to see Stiles finally entering the school. He was followed by his usually posse: Scott Mccall, Jackson Whittemore, and Isaac Lahey. The four boys leisurely walked down the hall, chatting like they didn’t realize all eyes were on them. Stiles was at the helm, smiling and winking at girls as he walked. Allison couldn’t help rolling her eyes.

When the boys finally neared Allison and Lydia, Lydia made a small whimpering sound, and began pressing herself against the lockers. Stiles and co., walked past without so much as glance at either of the girls. Once they were around the corner, Lydia excitedly jumped up. She grabbed Allison’s shoulders, and squeezed.

“Did he look at me?”

“What?” Allison asked, confused.

“Stiles.” Lydia said. “Did he look at me? It kind of looked like he did.” She continued, not even bothering to wait for a response. “It was like a side look. What do you think that means?”

Allison just stood there baffled. She had no idea what Lydia was talking about. There was definitely not a look. Stiles paid not attention to Lydia as usual. But she didn’t want to hurt her feelings, or bring down her spirit.

“Definitely!” Allison spoke in the most excited tone she could manage. “He was totally looking at you.”

“You know what that means?”

“What?”

Crossing her arms, Lydia grinned. “I’m on his radar.”


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lydia has a crush on the most popular guy in school, Stiles Stilinski. She finally gets an opportunity to talk to him when Coach asks her to tutor him in math.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Here's chapter two.
> 
> I've got a lot more written past what's in this chapter that will be posted soon.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> packmartinski.tumblr.com

Algebra is boring. Especially when you’re the smartest student, and you just found out you’re finally on Stiles Stilinski’s radar.

Lydia stared blankly at her math book. Glancing up at the chalkboard, she let out a sigh. This was all so easy for her. Suddenly she regretted not applying for a higher-level class. Why didn’t she do that? Oh yeah. Her answer came in form of a skinny boy with chestnut hair sitting a few rows in front of her. Stiles was in this class. And how could she pass up the opportunity to stare at him for forty-five minutes; even if it only was the back of his head.

Their teacher turned from the board for a moment to ask if everyone still understood the material. The class mumbled a response in unison. Lydia fought the urge to lay her head down on her desk. She hadn’t realized how tired she was until now. She needed to stay awake somehow. What if she feel asleep and started snoring? What would Stiles think of her then?

Digging through her bag, Lydia pulled out the latest issue of Black Widow. She opened it and set it in her math book. Even though she could often loose herself in her reading, Lydia wasn’t worried about not paying attention to the lesson. She could do these formulas in her sleep.

Lydia’s attention was pulled into her comic. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed until the voice of someone other than her math teacher caught her attention. It was Coach. He stood in front of the classroom talking about the lacrosse team, and how good all the players were this season.

“But,” Coach was saying. “We need help from someone else. You see, some of our players,” He glanced quickly towards Stiles, “are having difficulty with math. If we want them to stay on the team, we need some one to tutor them. So, anyone up for the challenge?”

The class was silent, and no one moved. Of course they didn’t. None of them had a good enough grasp on the material to be able to tutor someone. Well, most of them didn’t. Lydia Martin on the other hand, she could teach it better than anyone. But she could hardly breath.

Stiles Stilinski need tutoring. Lydia FINALLY had a chance to get some alone time with him. Sure, they’d be filled with numbers, but it was better than nothing, right? Right! It was the opportunity of a lifetime. So why the hell wasn’t she raising her hand?

“Anyone?”

Fear. That’s why. Lydia was scared out of her mind. What if she screwed this up?

“Come on, guys. Last chance.”

Lydia glanced over at Stiles. He hand turned in his seat, and was slowly surveying the class. There was a hopeful look on his face. But also a desperate look. Lydia pictured him leaning over his math book, confused and seeking help. That’s all the encouragement she need.

Throwing her hand in the air, Lydia finally responded to Coach. “I’ll do it!”


	3. Chapter Three

Lydia had to wait till the end of the week to meet with Stiles. She snuck out of her last class ten minutes early. Allowing her plenty of time to get to the library before their meeting.   
While she waited, Lydia began setting up the table. She neatly laid out their math textbook, opening it to the current chapter. She also set a stack of scrap paper on the table, just incase Stiles forgot to bring a notebook.

Only five more minutes left. Lydia bit her lip nervously, and scanned the table one last time to make sure everything looked nice. She looked down at her dress to make sure it wasn’t wrinkled. It was the first time in months that Lydia had worn something that wasn’t advertising one of her favorite comic books, or TV shows. But in the early hours of the morning and with Allison’s help, she found something buried in the back of her close, a cute red dress with a flower belt. She also borrowed a pair of black wedges from Allison. Even though they were the same shoe size, Lydia’s feet ached. She was only used to wearing her Wonder Woman converse.

Lydia glanced back at the clock. Five minutes had passed. She excitedly looked towards the door. Any second now Stiles would walk in, and she would get to spend time with him and only him. Her heart pounded in her chest. But she had to wait a little bit longer than she thought.

Stiles was fifteen minutes late. And of course, Lydia spent every single one of those minutes worrying that he’d completely forgotten. She felt embarrassed. But finally, the door swung open and Stiles sauntered in. Lydia immediately perked up. She sat up straight and smiled at him as he walked towards her. Then she noticed Scott and Jackson right behind him. Her heart dropped. Had she completely misunderstood? Was she supposed to tutor them too? Thankfully, Stiles’s companions didn’t follow him all the way into the library. Instead the stood near the door. Once at the table, Stiles threw down his backpack and began rummaging through it.

“Hi.” Lydia said with a shaky voice. He must not have heard her though because he gave no reply. She decided to just patiently wait till he sat down.

After a few more moments, Stiles finally pulled a stack of papers out, and dropped them in front of Lydia. She shuffled through them, confused.

“Late assignments.” Stiles said as he swung his backpack over his shoulder again. “And the assignment due Monday.” He began backing away slowly. “Write out the answers and some loose leaf this weekend, and then I’ll write them on the worksheets Monday before class. Thanks.” He gave her a quick thumbs up before turning back around to join his friends.  
Lydia didn’t know it was possible, but she was angry with Stiles. She didn’t get up hours before school to do her hair, and find the perfect outfit just to do his homework for him.

“No!” Lydia suddenly shouted after him with a volume she didn’t know she could reach.

Stiles turned back around quickly, already halfway to his friends. “What?” His tone wasn’t cruel, but genuinely confused. Lydia glanced back at his friends for a second. Scott watched with a curious expression while Jackson looked irritated, and impatient.

Lydia looked back at Stiles. She decided to commit to her anger. After all, she’d had a crush on this guy since third grade. Now was her moment to actually be noticed by him. She wasn’t going to let anyone ruin that. Not even Stiles himself.

“I said no.”

Stiles chuckled. “Yeah, I heard you. But why are you saying no?”

Lydia bit her lip. How could she explain without sounding weird? “Well, you’re not going to learn if I just do the work for you.”

All three boys laughed. And Lydia could feel her face heat up. She couldn’t back down though.

“You know it’s true, Stiles.”

He folded his arms, and looked at her curiously.

Lydia continued. “Coach asked me to tutor you because you’re failing, right?” Stiles didn’t reply but his expression said it all. “And if you fail you can’t be on the lacrosse team. Well, do you really think that passing some assignments is going to get you to pass the class? You need to understand the material, Stiles. You need to pass tests.”

Jackson and Scott were whispering to each other, giving Lydia glances. She didn’t care about them though. She just cared about Stiles standing in front of her. He turned towards his friends, and told them he’d catch up with them later. And then he walked back to the table, and sat down. Lydia wanted to pinch herself; make sure it wasn’t all a dream.

Stiles reached out, causing Lydia’s breath to catch in her throat. He grabbed the open math book and pulled it towards him. Then he looked up at Lydia. “Well,” He said, “let’s get me an A in math.”

Lydia snorted. She couldn’t help it.

Stiles chuckled. “Alright, a B?”

“Um…” Lydia said.

“C.” Stiles said. “I’m good with a C.”

He looked down at the chapter, while Lydia flipped through her notes. Trying to find a good place to start. Suddenly, he looked back up at her.

“Lydia?” He said, while she tried to not pass out from excitement at him saying her name.

“Yeah?” She said quietly.

“Are you on the debate team?”

She smiled and shook her head.

“Well, you should be.” Stiles grinned at her. And Lydia realized that it was the first time one of his smiles had been just for her.


	4. Chapter Four

Stiles was bad at math. Well, obviously Lydia already knew that since she was asked to tutor him. But when they started working on his late assignments, she realized just how bad. He was barely following any of the concepts they’d learned so far. No wonder their teacher had endorsed Lydia to be tutor. She was probably one of the few students who could handle such a challenge.

It was clear that Stiles was frustrated with his self. He looked at the work grimly, and did a lot of sighing. Of course it was Lydia’s luck that her first real interactions with Stiles would make him think of something so stressful.

Two weeks into their sessions, they were given a pop quiz. When their teacher began distributing the papers, Lydia glanced at Stiles. He looked like he was beginning to panic. Suddenly, he turned quickly to meet her gaze. Her stomach clenched, and her breath caught in her throat. It was the first time Stiles had acknowledged her in class since she became his tutor.

Lydia found her courage, and smiled at Stiles widely while giving him a thumbs up. A small smile began to come across his face, but he quickly turned back around.  
The next day they met in the library after school. Earlier in class, their pop quizzes were given back to them. Before saying anything, Stiles pulled out his graded quiz and set it in front of Lydia. A red C+ stared back at her.

Stiles began talking rapidly. “I know it’s not good. I’m a slow learner, but—”

“Not good?” Lydia said, cutting him off. “Stiles this is amazing!”

He looked at her skeptically.

“Well, okay. Maybe not ‘amazing,’ but you should be proud of yourself. Up until now you’ve been getting D’s and F’s.”

“Yeah, but this isn’t going to save my grade, Lydia. And it’s not going to keep me on the team.”

Lydia shrugged. “Now, but it’s a start. It’s an improvement.” She leaned forward slowly. “Stiles, I know it easier said than done but you can’t be so hard on yourself. It’s important to enjoy all victories. No matter how small.”

Stiles didn’t say anything. Just stared back at Lydia blankly. She was sure she hadn’t convinced him to look on the bright side, but suddenly he sat up with a big smile on his face. “You’re right.” He stood up, and began packing his bag.

Lydia watched, confused. “Um, I don’t think we should skip studying.”

“Who said anything about skipping? We’re just switching up locations. Somewhere with ice cream.”

“We?” Lydia asked, suddenly feeling short of breath.

Stiles laughed. “Of course. I need my tutor.” As he spoke he reached out and gently ran his hand across her shoulder. After removing his hand, he turned to exit the library. “Come on.”

Lydia jumped slightly. As she began quickly gathering her stuff, she was incredibly aware of the spot on her shoulder where Stiles’s hand had been only moments before.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW!
> 
> I can't believe it's been two months since I've updated The Tutor. But don't worry! I have every intention of finishing, and actually this is the second last chapter.
> 
> The last will be up soon, hopefully within the week. Summer has started so I now can focus on this.
> 
> Also, if you like this fic, or any of my others, keep an eye on my page throughout the summer. I've got ideas for several other Stiles/Lydia fics, so there will be many more!
> 
> Happy reading! And thanks for the comments/kudos!
> 
> Check out my tumblr: packmartinski.tumblr.com

Everyone was staring at them.

Well, everyone was always staring at Stiles. But now they were all staring at Lydia, too. Probably because she was eating ice cream in a cozy booth with him. He was the most popular guy in school, and no one had a clue who Lydia was. It only made since that they would all stare.

Stiles seemed oblivious to the eyes on them. Lydia found it distracting though. She slowly ate her mint chocolate chip ice cream while slightly glancing to the side at a group of girls who were whispering. They were giving her confused looks, and she swore she heard one of them say, “who they hell is that?”.

Lydia turned back towards Stiles. He’d scarfed down his bowl of birthday cake ice cream, and was working on a practice quiz Lydia had made the night before. He ran his fingers through his hair while staring at the quiz with an intense look. He’d been working on the quiz for a bit, but seemed to be moving through it quicker than usual.

After a few more minutes, Stiles completed the last problem and sat up. Smiling, he slid the quiz across the table to her. Lydia pulled a purple folder (her Stiles folder) out of her backpack. She set it on the diner table and pulled out an answer key for the quiz he just took. She placed the two sheets neatly in front of her. When she looked up, Stiles was grinning at her.

Lydia gave a quick glance over to the whispering girls. They seemed even more surprised about the way Stiles Stilinski was looking at this mystery girl. She tried to hold back a smile from spreading across her own face. “What?” She finally asked him.

“Oh, nothing.” Stiles said. His grin didn’t disappear. “It’s just—you’re so organized.”

Lydia felt her face go red. “Oh, sorry.”

Stiles was shaking his head. “Don’t apologize.” He smiled even wider. “It’s cute.” Immediately his face went just as red as Lydia, and his grin dropped. He looked down at his lap quickly, avoiding eye contact with Lydia.

It took all of her strength not to jump up on the table and scream. Stiles Stilinski thought she was cute. Well, he though her organization was cute. But that’s basically the same thing. Lydia couldn’t wait to call Allison, and tell her the second she got home.

“Um,” Lydia started, looking back down at his quiz. “I’ll just take a second to look this over.”

***

From then on, Lydia and Stiles stopped studying at the library. The diner became their home for a few hours after school ended. They always ended up in one of the booths near the window with large bowls of ice cream. Sometimes Stiles even paid for both.

Lydia would walk him through their homework assignments, and sometimes give him a practice quiz. Stiles loved those. He said they made him feel ready for the real quizzes. One time he even told Lydia how much he appreciated her taking the time to make them. She freaked out over that comment for an hour with Allison.

But the tutoring really was helping him. His C+ had been just the beginning. On the last quiz Stiles got a B. He jumped up and down, and thanked Lydia right in the middle of math class.

And just like that, Lydia Martin’s identity was finally known. She was Stiles’s math tutor, or the girl lucky enough to spend every afternoon with Stiles.

Lydia wasn’t sure how to feel about the attention. Other tutors seemed to appreciate that one of them was finally getting some recognition from a jock. Many of the people in Stiles’s friend group didn’t seem to like her, however. Maybe they didn’t understand why Stiles just wasn’t having her do his homework for him. 

But they were spending a lot of time together. She hadn’t realized until everyone started talking about them. They studied together every afternoon after school. Lydia knew they could decrease the time they spent together. After all, Stiles was clearly improving. But there was no way she was going to suggest that. Their afternoons together were the only things she looked forward to everyday. And if Stiles was sick of seeing her he’d tell her, right?

It was a Thursday afternoon, and Stiles and Lydia were sitting in their usual booth. They’d been there for an hour already, but hadn’t even cracked open their math books. Instead they were talking. This had been happening the last couple of weeks. They’d order ice cream and chat for a while before starting to study.

Lydia heard all about lacrosse. She now knew all the rules, the teams they had the most trouble beating, Stiles’s role on the team, etc. But more important than that, she heard about what lacrosse meant to Stiles. He talked about how he started playing after his mom died.

“It helped me survive that time, you know?” Stiles had said to her.

Lydia nodded. “I think I get what you mean. Reading comics helped me get through my parent’s divorce. I mean—” She paused. “It’s not exactly the same. But I get it.”

Stiles gave her a small smile. “Throwing yourself into something completely just makes those time more bearable.” He sat up, and leaned forward towards Lydia. “It’s like, if I was feeling sad or angry about her being gone, I could just practice or play a game with friends and it felt like I was fighting through all that pain.”

Lydia loved getting these insights into Stiles’s world. She was beginning to really know him. For a long time she worried that maybe she wouldn’t like him anymore after actually knowing him. But it only made her like him more.

On this particular Thursday afternoon, Lydia was explaining some of her favorite Wonder Woman arcs. He’d asked her what her favorite comic book is, and of course Lydia can’t just casually mention Wonder Woman without going into a full explanation. When she first started talking she was worried he was bored. But as she explained various plots his eyes grew wide, and he leaned in.

“So that’s all part of the new—the new what?” Stiles asked, putting his last spoonful of ice cream in his mouth.

“The New 52.” Lydia responded quickly. She glanced down at her ice cream. She hadn’t had a single spoonful yet. It just sat there, all melted in the bowl now.

Stiles laughed, noticing her untouched ice cream. “Wow, Wonder Woman must be really good to make you forget about cookie dough ice cream.”

Lydia blushed. “Sorry I just said all that. I just really like talking about that stuff.”

“Don’t apologize.” He shook his head. “I loved hearing about all of it. You’ll have to lend me some Wonder Woman stuff to read.”

“Really?” Lydia sat up.

Stiles nodded with a huge grin on his face. “Really. I’ve never read a comic book before. Might as well start with your favorite.”

Lydia bit her lip in an attempt to stop a smile from taking over her entire face. “Okay, I’ll bring some stuff for you to read tomorrow.”

Swirling her spoon around in her soupy ice cream, Lydia looked up at Stiles. He was looking back at her. A small smile still on his face.

“What?” She asked.

Stiles jumped slightly. “Oh, uh, nothing. Just—uh—this has been nice. And I mean all of this. Like all of our study sessions.”

“Yeah, it has been.” Lydia was amazed that she was able to sound so casual, considering how much she freaked out whenever she got home.

After a few more moments of silence, Lydia spoke again. “So, um, should we get started studying?”

“I actually already did the homework.”

Lydia was surprised. “When?”

“During study hall.”

She wasn’t quite sure what to say. If he already did the homework then why were they here?

Like he was reading her mind, Stiles spoke again. “I did it because I was hoping we wouldn’t have to study at all today.”

“Oh.” Lydia said, still at a loss for words. “Then do you want to leave?”

“No.”

“What do you want to do?”

Stiles glanced around. “Um, this. Well, this is what I was hoping we’d do instead of math. Just, you know, talk.”

Lydia’s heart had never pounded so hard in her chest. She couldn’t believe what was happening. Stiles did his math ahead of time, so he could talk with Lydia. What the hell was going on? Stiles Stilinski liked spending time with her!

“So,” Stiles started again. He leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. “How was your day?”


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Here it is...the last chapter!
> 
> Hope you've all enjoyed reading this fic. It was a lot of fun to write. :)
> 
> Throughout the summer I will be posting more fics. I've got an idea for a big Stiles and Lydia fic that I hope will work out.
> 
> As always, thanks for the kudos and comments. And check out my tumblr: packmartinski.tumblr.com

Stiles and Lydia were friends.

For the longest time, Lydia couldn’t believe it. She refused to believe Stiles Stilinski was actually friends with her. But the evidence was alarming. They had each other’s cell numbers, and texted frequently. He regularly sat with her at lunch now. And they continued to meet up after school.

So there was no more denying it.

Even Allison seemed surprised. She gave Lydia a confused look like no other when Stiles joined them at their lunch table for the first time. But now they were both getting used to his presence. Sometime Scott even sat with them. And Lydia swore she saw him and Allison exchanging longing looks.

But as the end of the first semester grew closer, and final exam prep began, Lydia found she couldn’t be happier. Maybe her and Stiles would even hang out over winter break. The thought gave her a smile she wore all day. She tried to imagine spending New Year’s Eve with him. Maybe as the count down to the new year began, he’d look at her and lean in, giving a kiss to remember forever.

Lydia was getting ahead of herself. She was just now getting used to calling Stiles a friend. He probably wasn’t going to be giving her a new year’s kiss anytime soon.

“Hey!”

Lydia looked up from her peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Stiles stood in front of her, his lunch tray in hand. There was a huge grin on his face, so of course Lydia couldn’t help smiling too. He set his tray down on the table, and took a seat.

“By yourself today?”

“Yeah.” Lydia responded. “Allison’s making up a quiz with Coach.”

Stiles nodded while picking up a chicken nugget.

“No Scott?” She asked.

Since he’d already began chewing, Stiles just shook his head.

Lydia nodded. So, they were alone today.

“Have you heard about that?” Stiles said after he finished chewing his food. Lydia looked to see him pointing to a poster on a nearby wall. It was for the winter formal; a dance that happened every year right before winter break began. She had never gone. 

The school was covered in those posters. And everyone was talking about it. But it only gave Lydia a stomach ache as she imagined what girl Stiles would inevitably take.

“Um, you mean the dance?”

Stiles nodded.

“The dance that happens all the time? And no one shuts up about? Yeah, I’ve heard of it.”

Stiles laughed, as he always did when Lydia was sarcastic with him. “So are you going?”

Lydia raised an eyebrow at him. “Why would I do a thing like that?”

“Because it’s fun.”

“That’s debatable.” Lydia said after snorting.

“Have you ever been to it?” Stiles asked, leaning back. It seemed he already knew the answer, so she remained silent. He nodded slowly, a smile creeping across his face. “That’s what I thought.”

Lydia grabbed her sandwich and took a large bite out of it. She had the sudden urge to slap Stiles across the face. And then maybe do other things to his face…

“Well,” Stiles continued, undeterred by her silence. “You’re going this year.”

“Oh, am I?”

“Yep.” He said, matter-of-factly.

“So I’m going to walk into that dance all by myself just because Stiles Stilinski told me so.”

Stiles laughed a little. “Not by yourself. With me.”

Lydia couldn’t prevent a small gasp from escaping from her. She tried to stay composed though. She didn’t want him to see how excited it made her. “Is that you’re way of asking me to the dance?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

Lydia just stared at him.

Stiles’s smile dropped slightly. He sat up in his chair. “Okay. I’ve been thinking about this moment for a while. And that’s definitely not how I wanted to ask you.”

Lydia raised an eyebrow at him, and tried to ignore her heart skip a beat when he said he’d been thinking about this for a while. But she kept quiet, and let him continue.

“I guess I just thought spitting it out like that would be easier. But screw it.” He took a deep breath. And for the first time, Stiles actually looked nervous. He leaned forward. “Lydia Martin, would you please go to the winter formal with me?”

Lydia leaned forward, looking him straight in the eyes. Giving him a small smile, she responded to his question, “Of course.”

Exhaling deeply, Stiles leaned back. “Whew. Thank God.”

***

Just as the whole school figured out about Stiles and Lydia being friends, they soon all found out they were also attending the dance together.

Allison and Lydia were sure it would mean things would change. But Lydia was still a stranger to most of the school. While Stiles was still the most popular. So people did not take kindly to this news.

Lydia received strange, and confused looks in the halls and at lunch. It seemed everyone was thinking the same thing, “Why her?” Stiles hardly dated (seriously at least), and all of the sudden he was going on a date with some nobody. It made no sense.

As the week of the dance came, rumors about Lydia began. Some were harmless. But some were brutal. There were rumors that Lydia stalked Stiles ever since middle school. Another was that she had pictures of him all over her bedroom wall.

Stiles dismissed the rumors. He knew they were all fake. And at first this was enough to comfort Lydia. But as the week went on, school became unbearable. Students were calling her “weirdo,” and wrote “slut” and “whore” on her locker in black sharpie.

When Lydia first saw the words written on her locker, she nearly started crying in the middle of the hallway. But there were eyes on her, and crying would just give them more ammunition. Instead she just quickly cleaned the words off, without even mentioning it to Allison or Stiles.

On the day of the dance, Lydia was feeling uneasy. She didn’t want to walk into the gymnasium and have everyone’s eyes on her. Whispering about her. Saying cruel things about her. She did nothing to deserve it. Stiles liked her. So what? But everyone loved him and she was just some weird stranger that was getting in the way.

Lydia stood in her bedroom, staring at her dress. It was light pink with white trim along the bottom. Her and Allison had bought it last weekend. She couldn’t wait for Stiles to see her in it. She couldn’t wait to see herself in it.

Once the dress was on, and her hair and make up were done, Lydia began to feel better. She could do it. She could tune out everyone and just focus on Stiles. They’d have an amazing time, and maybe she’d even get that kiss she’d been dreaming about for ages.

The doorbell suddenly rang. Lydia checked the time. It was half and hour before Stiles was going to pick her up. She wondered why he would come that early on her way downstairs.

After opening the door, instead of seeing Stiles, Scott stood before her.

Lydia gave him a surprised look. “Oh, hey. Um, what’s up?”

Scott didn’t have his usual puppy dog smile. Instead he looked at her grimly. “Hey, Lydia. There’s something I wanted to tell you. Something I think you should know.”

Lydia swallowed hard. Did Stiles cancel on her? And did he send his best friend to tell her? “Uh, okay. What is it?” She tried not to reveal the panic she was feeling.

After taking a deep breath, Scott continued, “Well, some of the kids at school are planning something. A prank. A prank they’re going to pull on you when you come into the dance.”

Lydia’s stomach dropped, and she immediately felt the panic she’d been feeling all week come rushing back. “Who’s planning it?”

“Jackson mainly. But he’s got a lot of help from other people on the team, and other students.”

“What’s the prank going to be?” Lydia hated how small, and quiet her voice sounded.

Scott sighed again. “They’re planning on hiding in the bushes outside of the school, and then jumping out and throwing paint on you.”

Lydia just shook her head. Why the hell did they hate her so much? “Does Stiles know?” She asked.

“No. I just found out a little while ago, and thought I’d tell you first.”

“Thanks.” Lydia mumbled. She was grateful for Scott telling her, but worry was consuming and distracting her.

“Are you going to tell him?” Scott asked.

That was a good question. A question Lydia had no answer to. All she knew was that the dance was the last place she wanted to be. Even if she could avoid them while walking into the school, she’d spend the rest of the night worrying that they’d change their plan and get her later. It wouldn’t be fun.

Lydia told Scott she would handle it, thanked him again, and then said good-bye. Back in her room, she laid down on her bed. What was she going to tell Stiles? She didn’t want to go anymore, but she felt her reasoning would seem weak to him.

After several minutes of thinking, Lydia decided to just text Stiles. That way she couldn’t hear the disappointment in his voice. Or be persuaded to go.

**Hey. Can’t go to the dance anymore. Thanks for the invite though.**

Lydia dropped her phone back down on to the bed. That should be good enough. She picked her phone back up to put it on silent. Her plan was to ignore it for the rest of the night. But as she held it, she received a response from Stiles.

**I’m coming over.**

“Ugh!” Lydia groaned.

He was coming over? Now it would be impossible for her to resist going to the dance. But twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang again. Lydia reluctantly went to answer it. She was surprised to see that Stiles wasn’t dressed up. At least not for the winter formal. In one hand he carried a large paper bag.

“You like burgers, right?” He asked her immediately.

“Um, yeah.” Lydia asked, still caught off guard.

Stiles nodded. “Good. I brought some. And fries. Um, can I come in?”

Lydia stepped aside, and then led Stiles into the kitchen. He set the bag on the counter and began pulling out food. She grabbed some plates from a cabinet.

“I talked to Scott.” Stiles said, grabbing a french fry.

“Oh?” Lydia asked.

Stiles nodded again. “I understand why you don’t want to go anymore. But I wanted tonight to be for us. So that’s why I’m here.”

Lydia smiled at him. Still in shock that this was now her life. Stiles Stilinski was part of her life.

“We can eat greasy food, and talk. We don’t need a lame dance with bad music, and people trying to throw paint at you.”

“Yeah,” Lydia said with a laugh. “I can do without those.”

“You look beautiful though.”

Lydia blushed.

“Beautiful. Smart. Funny. Lydia Martin’s got it all.”

She took a deep breath, and smiled up at him. “You’re not too bad yourself.”

Stiles laughed. “Thanks for tutoring me.”

Lydia shrugged. “Anytime.”

“Well, let’s hope I won’t be in that bad of shape again.”

They both laughed. But after they stopped, Stiles was just staring at her. His face lined with concentration. Lydia felt her heart pounding in her chest.

Lydia had imagined this moment a thousand different ways, a thousand different times. But none of those daydreams compared to the real moment. The real moment that Stiles gently put his hand on her face. He pulled her in closely, one hand now on her waist. Then he leaned in and kissed her.

It was everything she’d hoped for. How could it not be? It was Stiles Stilinski. He was good at everything. As soon as they broke apart, Lydia was already craving the second kiss.

But she wasn’t the only one stunned.

“Wow.” Stiles breathed.

Lydia laughed.

“I mean, wow!” Stiles rubbed his thumb gently on her cheek. “You know that not how I originally expected that moment to be.”

“Really?”

“Really. I imagined pretty lights, romantic music, you know, cliché things.”

“You didn’t imagine my kitchen with half eaten burgers behind us.” Lydia said.

Stiles smiled. “No. But now I really don’t think it would be possible for the moment to have gone badly.”

Lydia’s face went red.

“What do you say, Lydia? Should we keep this moment going?”

“Absolutely.” Lydia said with a huge grin. And this time she kissed him.


End file.
